History of Photography

The history of photography dates back more than 1000 years. A man living in the time period of approximately 1000AD invented the Camera Obscura. This pinhole camera basically consisted of a box with a small hole in one side. Light passed through the box, hit an image, and projected the image (upside down) onto a paper or other surface outside the opposite side of the box. In early times, people used these Camera Obscuras to view images and to reproduce them via drawings.

The next big step for photography occurred in 1827. At that time, a Frenchman used a Camera Obscura to capture the first photographic image. He accomplished this by engraving a metal plate and then coating it with a substance called bitumen. When he exposed this metal plate to light, the engraved areas would block light, but light would encounter the bitumen on the non-engraved areas, causing a chemical reaction. He then placed the plate into a solvent, thus producing a temporary image. This process was time-intensive, taking 8 hours to develop a temporary photo.

But a contemporary of his, a French chemist, drastically reduced this exposure time. In 1829, the two formed a partnership, seeking to improve the initial photographic exposure process. The original inventor died before the pair could develop an efficient process. But the chemist proceeded alone, and in 1839, he developed a process (called the daguerreotype) that reduced exposure time to a mere 30 minutes. This process involved coating silver-plated copper in iodine, exposing it to light, and then developing it by way of heated mercury vapors. The daguerreotype became popular right away. Though it was developed in France, 70 daguerreotype studios had made their way to New York by 1850.

Throughout the remainder of the 19th century, there were continual advances in photography. An Englishman invented the wet plate negative in 1851. The tin type was patented by an American professor in 1856. And then, in 1871 the dry plate negative was invented using gelatin as an integral part of the process. The dry plate process enabled the invention of the handheld camera.

A significant advancement in photography occurred in 1889 when an inventor developed a film that was flexible enough to be rolled. This advancement lessened the cost of photography, putting it into the hands of the masses via handheld box cameras. Photography soon became a popular hobby.

Though the first known color photograph was taken in 1861, color film was not widely available on the commercial market until the 1940's. At first, the dye used for color photography was not stable, and the photographs faded significantly over time. However, continuing advancements in color printing have led to dyes that are stable for long periods of time.

An American inventor developed the polaroid photograph, and the first polaroid camera was released on the market in 1948. The first disposable camera hit the market in 1986. Digital cameras premiered in 1984, and of course, the science of digital photography continues to advance into the 21st century.